Government unveils ambitious SATHI initiative: New centres to foster research collaboration with state-of-the-art analytical instruments

New Delhi: The government recently announced plans to establish new centres for housing significant analytical instruments. These centres will facilitate the sharing of these instruments with research institutions, subject to approval from the competent authority.

The Ministry of Science and Technology is currently considering recommendations from the empowered committee, led by former ISRO chairman K Radhakrishnan. The committee is evaluating 12 proposals to identify Sophisticated Analytical and Technical Help Institutes (SATHI), with decisions pending approval.

The Department of Science and Technology (DST) said that the recommendations from the expert committee meeting in Noida regarding the SATHI scheme proposals are in the processing stage. These announcements will be made after approval from the competent authority.

Additionally, DST is conducting a review of the Sophisticated Analytical Instrument Facilities (SAIF) program, a scheme with a history spanning five decades. A high-level committee has been established to enhance the program, with the aim of incorporating more SATHIs.

Earlier this year, the call for applications under the SATHI scheme was temporarily withdrawn for expert committee review. The DST plans to announce a fresh call with added features after receiving the committee’s recommendations, according to officials.

The government aims to expand several more SATHI facilities nationwide over the next three to four years. SATHI centres, equipped with advanced manufacturing facilities and major analytical instruments not typically found in institutes, strive to offer professionally managed services with efficiency, accessibility, and transparency.

The scheme targets industry, start-ups, and academia, fostering research collaboration and benefiting less endowed organisations, including MSMEs, state universities, and colleges. The overall goal is to promote a robust culture of research collaboration and leverage expertise across disciplines.